The Jacket
by lemonweenie
Summary: Akiko rummages through a dusty closet to find something special for Sasuke to wear to his genin graduation ceremony. Though things don't go as planned.
1. Chapter 1

"I passed the exam." As soon as those words fell from Sasuke's lips, Akiko let out a gasp and brought a hand up to her mouth. She had promised herself that she wasn't going to cry, but it was just too hard. She had been waiting for this day for quite sometime, and she was so proud of Sasuke too.

"W-wait! Why are you crying!? I thought you would be happy?" Sasuke stared at the woman with a baffled expression. He wasn't sure if he was suppose to try and comfort her or not. Akiko shook her head and wiped a tear from her eye. "I'm just...so...happy for you, and proud! I'm shocked you aren't crying too!" She put her hands on his shoulders.

Sasuke blinked and let out a chuckle. "You know..I don't cry when I'm happy like you do." The woman nodded in response and smiled. "That is true...- OH! The graduation cermony! When is it?"

"It's in a few days, why?"

Akiko grinned and clapped her hands together. "I have to find you something nice to wear! Don't even try to argue with me on this. It's **too** important!" Sasuke's expression fell a bit. There was no convincing her when she got like this. She was in full "mom mode" now.

Akiko quickly stepped over to the closet at the wall, then opened the door excitedly. The closet was full of clothes that hadn't been worn in years. She rummaged through the clothes in a messy manner, and pulled out a blue dress shirt with a white flower pattern. "What do you think of this?"

Sasuke frowned. He was not impressed. "..No...Akiko...no." He crossed his arms. Akiko glanced back at the boy and narrowed his eyes. "By the power vested in me, I will find you a nice shirt to wear."

"What is wrong with what I'm wearing?" He looked down at the blue collared shirt he currently had on. "I wear this all the time. No one cares Akiko."

The woman turned around dramatically, placing a hand over her heart. " _Was this kid serious?"_ "Sasuke... _sweetie_...! I will not allow you to wear that sweaty training garb to your graduation." She worried for Sasuke, she _really_ did. She could have washed his blue shirt, but she _really_ wanted him to wear something special for this.

Sasuke rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. He didn't see the point in picking out special clothing. Akiko let out a sigh, then motioned for the boy to come forward. "Why don't you pick something out then? There are a lot of clothes here." At least if Sasuke picked out what he wore, he wouldn't totally reject the idea, right?

If it would make Akiko happy, he'd gladly pick something out so he could go on with his day. He went forward into the closet and glanced around briefly. "Well...I can see why these things haven't seen the light of day in years." He picked up a dusty purple sleeveless jacket and shook it off. "Pff...look at this thing.." He held it up towards Akiko.

"Oh...this is..." She took it from the boy and looked over it. "I wore this when I was about your age!"

"...And you still have it? ...After...how many years?"

Akiko opened her mouth to say something, but she had to think for a moment. "Well..I'm 37 now so that would be...eh...it doesn't matter!" She held it up to Sasuke's body and a wide smile appeared on her face.

Sasuke went wide-eyed and gave Akiko a quizzical look. " _This_? ...Really?" The woman tilted her head. "This color looks nice on you...but there are plenty of other things to rummage through and look at!"

Sasuke took the jacket from her and looked it over again. It was old, but there were no tears or stains. He wondered how often she even wore this, or why she kept it for over 20 years. It must have been special for _some_ reason. "...I guess...this is fine. It must be pretty sturdy to have lasted for this long..right?" He glanced up at Akiko.

Her face lit up and she nodded quickly. Yes but...are you sure that is what you want to wear? I won't object if you want to look for something else!" The boy shook his head. He thought the jacket was decent enough, and he didn't want to spend anymore time on this than he had to.

Akiko quickly snatched the jacket back from Sasuke, grinning. "I have to wash it then, and add the final touch!"

"Huh...? Final touch? What do you mean? It's fine how it is..."

The woman shook her head and placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder. "Just...trust me. " Her expression softened and he took notice of it. "..Okay.."

"It might take me a few hours so...you'll have to wait until then. I want to get this right!"

Sasuke watched as Akiko excitedly shuffled into the next room to complete the _secret_ final touch. While he was _confused_ as to why the jacket needed a final touch, he couldn't help but feel curious about it too. Despite his intial irritation, anytime Akiko did something like this it always turned out well and he appreciated it in the end.

 **TBC**


	2. The Jacket Pt 2

With a laser like focus, Sasuke trained all afternoon. He had nearly forgotten all about the jacket Akiko had been fixing up for him. When he trained, he tended to focus on things past. Bad memories. He used it as motivation to get stronger, but it still effected him negatively. When the sun was nearly set, he headed towards home.

Before he could even place his hand on the door, it swung open and Akiko was standing there with surprised look on her face. "Your home! I almost went out looking for you!" Sasuke blinked then walked past her casually. "I was just training.."

Akiko closed the door and looked over at him. She had been excited to give him the jacket, but now something was bothering her. Sasuke had always been a quiet child. Sometimes getting him to respond was like pulling teeth. However, there was a certain way Sasuke behaved when he was brooding. The expression on his face and his body language was a dead give away. Akiko had learned to spot it quickly in order to snap him out of it. There was no reason for him to wallow in this misery.

"Sasuke...are you okay?"

Sasuke winced a little and glanced back at her. He hated that tone she used on him. It always broke his focus. "I'm fine." The attitude was there. It seemed like Sasuke wasn't even trying to hide it this time.

Akiko furrowed her brow and frowned. This was not going to happen _again_. As Sasuke attempted to walk to his room she grabbed him by the arm. "You just wait a second! I know that look on your face. I know what you are thinking about. Please, talk to me Sasuke."

The boy pulled his arm away and turned around to face her. "Leave me alone! I don't care about your stupid jacket or if you want to talk! I don't have time for you!"

Akiko could feel her heart drop. She had faced similar situations with Sasuke before. It was always the same phrases from him.

 _"You aren't my mother!"_

 _"What do you know about it?!"_

 _"I have to get stronger. I can't waste my time with you!"_

She really thought they had grown close enough that he wouldn't say these things anymore. However, she had to remind herself that Sasuke was still a child. He was only 12, it wasn't his fault. "...So...is your plan to sit in your room all day and think about the past? Think about it all by yourself?"

The boy narrowed his eyes at Akiko. "I'm a genin now. I'll be going on missions soon enough. You'll barely get to see me at all. You might as well get use to it now."He was trying so hard to push her away, Akiko could see it. "...Sasuke that isnt-"

"You act like _talking_ fixes everything." He lowered his head and clenched his fists. "Meditation and speaking about what happened isn't going to change anything!" He could feel a burning in his eyes and throat. Why did he have to get so emotional in front of her?

"Talking won't change what happened, that is true, but releasing all of the anger you are holding inside helps. It helps to make you realize you aren't alone, Sasuke." Akiko spoke calmly. She desperately wanted to reach out to him, but knew it would only make things worse at the moment. "I'm here with you now, and I'm not going anywhere."

"That is the problem!" He looked up at her, glaring as tears started to stream down his face. "Why can't you just...just...leave me alone!?" He quickly turned from her and ran towards his room. Akiko didn't try to stop him this time. She merely watched as he went and slammed his door.

Sasuke knew Akiko loved him like a son, and they certainly had a bond. Which was the reason why he had gotten so emotional in the first place. He had guilt for speaking to her the way he did. She made him think twice about the path he wanted to go down. It had been a struggle for the past 6 years.

The boy pressed his back against the bedroom door and hid his face in his hands. "Stop...crying...just...stop.." He whispered to himself. After a moment, he took a deep breath. He lifted his head, and wiped his eyes. He refused to let the situation get the better of him. He was just going to go to bed and forget about it.

Before he climbed into his bed he took notice of a folded piece of clothing that had been neatly laid out on it. Sasuke's face fell again when he noticed what it was.

The purple sleeveless jacket, freshly washed. It appeared that the Uchiha symbol had been newly sewn onto the back as well. "This is...it was...the big ...surprise?" He held up the jacket, staring at it as his lip began to quiver. Knowing what the symbol meant to Sasuke, Akiko had gladly sewn it into her 20 year old jacket. "This is...s-stupid.." The boy kept trying to keep himself together about this situation, but it wasn't working.

He buried his face into the cloth, starting to cry again.

 _"I hate it so much..."_ He said in muffled voice.

 **TBC**


	3. Chapter 3

It had been a few hours since Sasuke's outburst. He was laying in bed with his back towards the bedroom door. It took some time for everything to really sink into his head. No matter what Sasuke ever said to Akiko, she never changed her opinions about him. He had heard her say such kind things..

 _"He is really smart, you know?"_

 _"I'm so proud of him!"_

 _"He is such a strong kid..!"_

The boy's self-reflection was interrupted by a knock at his door, and a gentle voice. "Sasuke, can I come in?" He slowly sat up in his bed and responded in a tired tone. "...Y-yeah.."

Akiko came into the room, holding a bowl of food. "I...brought you dinner." Trying to break the ice, she smiled at him. Sasuke shook his head. "I'm not really hungry."

The woman let out a sigh and set the bowl on the nearby desk. "You were training all afternoon, you have to be a little hungry."

"I'm sorry."

Akiko glanced over at Sasuke with a surprised look on her face. "...Sasuke, you don't need to-"

"Yes I do. ...What I said about you..was wrong. I was just..."

She walked over and knelt near the side of the bed so she was closer to Sasuke's eye-level. "I know. You were frustrated, and that is okay. It's perfectly fine, but I'm glad you apologized. I accept your apology." Akiko didn't want Sasuke to feel guilty about something like this. He was already carrying the weight of some severe survivor's guilt.

"I was frusterated because...I still have my goal in mind...and if you don't let me focus on it, I won't be strong enough to defeat my brother or protect the people I care about.."

Ah, so that was it. Akiko had a hunch it was something like that. The intense focus Sasuke had was good in some situations, but when he was alone he tended to hyper-focus on negative things, which usually changed his behavior. "Sasuke, you are not alone in this. I want you to remember that. No matter what happens, I'm going to protect you. " Sasuke's heart was in the right place, but those who focused on _revenge_ tended to get lost in the process.

Sasuke looked over at her with a weary frown on his face. What she said really struck a cord with him. Not because of what she _meant_ , but because she had said it so many times before. Akiko never changed her tone or wavered in her feelings for him. She was a constant anchor that kept him grounded in the right place.

The woman got up and sat next to him, then put a arm around him, pulling him close. Sasuke let out a breath, letting himself rest against her body. After a moment of silence, he spoke again. "I saw the jacket.."

"Oh?"

"...I really like it.."

Akiko looked down at Sasuke with a smile. "I thought you might like it, but I wasn't sure if I got the stitching right." She chuckled. The boy pulled away so he could grab the jacket and look it over again. "No..its...really good. Really well sewn. I'm glad you did this for me.."

"So..does that mean you'll wear it to graduation instead of your sweaty blue shirt?" Sasuke sighed and rolled his eyes. "Yeah...yeah. I kind of implied that with what I just said.."

Akiko let out a laugh and stood up. "Well, now I have something else to plan." Sasuke looked over at her curiously. "...What else are you planning?"

 _'A cake and possibly inviting over a few friends to celebrate your graduation.'_

"That is a surprise! Trust me, you'll like it."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "...Hm.." What else did she plan on giving him? It was going to be hard to top this jacket thing. Akiko noticed the boy was starting really think, so she placed her hand on his head. "You don't need to think so hard about it, okay? Just relax a little."

The boy looked up at Akiko and then glanced away. "...You know I don't really like sweets though...right?"

Akiko went wide-eyed and let out a gasp. "How did you know?!" He looked back up at her with a small smile. "I know you well enough by now." Sasuke seemed pretty smug for a moment.

"Oh no, you have me all figured out. Well, I guess I'll just have to think of another surprise..!"

"...Wait, what?!"

 **End**


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